Seminar Schedule

Monday, April 28, 2014

Stewardship: An Introductory Overview

Stewardship has become crucial to buffer homeowners from the impact of the economic recession. CLTs commit to the stewardship of both homes and homeowners in order to: 1) monitor and enforce contractual agreements that preserve affordability, 2) encourage sound maintenance of properties, and 3) promote homeowner success and prevent foreclosure. This course will review best practices of CLT stewardship programs and outline the critical factors of stewardship that CLTs must address.

Event Speaker

Jaclyn Marcotte

Homeownership Compliance CoordinatorChamplain Housing Trust

Jaclyn Marcotte is the Homeownership Compliance Coordinator for Champlain Housing Trust and has been with the organization since 2010. Her role includes coordination of marketing, income verification of prospective buyers, helping owners prepare to sell their homes, processing refinances, and special projects. Since 2012, Jaclyn has been the administrator of CHT’s HomeKeeper database. She customized the database, oversaw migration and data entry, and created reports, dashboards, and merge templates to streamline program operations. She is now helping other CLTs in VT to adopt HomeKeeper as part of the Cornerstone Homeownership Innovation Program. Jaclyn has a background in software and data management, and firsthand knowledge of CHT’s shared equity program as a homeowner.

Sustaining our organizations is critical if we expect to honor our commitment to long term stewardship. That means thinking about how we can sustain our financial health and mission impact over the long-term. This course will introduce participants to the concept of building a sustainable nonprofit business model that involves analyzing your current mix of programs and revenue streams and identifying ways to make them more sustainable.

Event Speakers

Julie Brunner

Housing ManagerOPAL Community Land Trust

Julie has been the Housing Manager for OPAL Community Land Trust since 2002. In that capacity, Julie manages resident and homebuyer policies, project financing, resident applications, mortgage financing and homebuyer education instruction. In addition to working for OPAL, Julie is a consultant specializing in CLTs and homeownership programs and has been teaching courses for the National Community Land Trust since 2006. Julie has worked in the field of affordable housing since 1995 and prior to that in social service and international economic development. She has a B.A. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and a Master of City and Regional Planning from Rutgers University. Julie lives with her husband and two daughters on Orcas Island in Washington.

Melora Hiller

Executive DirectionNational CLT Network

Melora Hiller has over 20 years of experience working in the world of affordable housing and has worked with numerous CLTs in the Northwest. Prior to becoming the Executive Director, she consulted with nonprofit organizations, foundations and local governments in areas related to organizational development, nonprofit capacity building, strategic planning, and program development. Before becoming a consultant, Melora managed a statewide capacity-building program for housing and community development organizations, including: designing and implementing a technical and organizational development training program for professional staff and board members; overseeing investments in organizational core support for 15 nonprofits; brokering technical assistance capacity grants through an assessment and joint problem-solving approach and referral to appropriate technical consultants. Melora earned her Master’s degree in public administration at Seattle University’s Institute for Public Service. She has served on numerous nonprofit boards and school committees and is a graduate of Leadership Tomorrow. Melora is the founding board chair of the Capitol Hill Housing Foundation.

Engagement: Who Needs It?!

Providing affordable homeownership opportunities involves more than the construction of physical structures. CDCs, CLTs and other nonprofit developers must cultivate community support in a service area during the conceptual and planning stages of a project. As important is continued communication and connection to individuals and families served after homes have been developed and purchased. Through this course, participants will: (a) acquire basic concepts and strategies for building community support; (b) obtain sample methods for explaining resale-restricted homeownership to prospective buyers and the larger community; (c) demonstrate an understanding of the value of community and homeowner engagement; and (d) create effective strategies for fostering and sustaining homeowner engagement.

Event Speakers

Victoria Balko

Home Owner and Community Engagement ManagerCity of Lakes CLT

Victoria joined the City of Lakes Community Land Trust in February 2012 and as the Homeowner and Community Engagement Manager, oversees post-purchase support, events and trainings; manages the Homeowner’s Committee; engages community through presentations about the CLCLT’s impact; and connects homeowners with each other. Prior to the CLCLT, Victoria provided life coaching and mental health rehabilitation skills to individuals with mental health diagnoses and facilitated positive parenting groups. As a volunteer, Victoria has assisted women in the criminal justice system, worked with youth, and served as Board Vice President and Education Committee Chair of a community organizing organization, where she was successful in foster positive changes locally and federally toward closing the student achievement gap.

Harry Smith

Harry Smith is Director of Sustainable Economic Development at the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative (DSNI) and Director of Dudley Neighbors Inc. Community Land Trust. He has more than twenty years of experience in organizing to promote affordable housing and community economic development in Boston’s neighborhoods. Before coming to DSNI, Harry served as Director of Organizing and Community Planning at the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation and consulted with numerous community development and youth organizations on organizing, economic development, housing, and leadership initiatives. A graduate of Brown University, Harry has a Masters in Community Economic Development from Southern New Hampshire University.

Staci Horwitz

Program DirectorCity of Lakes Community Land Trust

Staci Horwitz joined City of Lakes Community Land Trust (CLCLT) in March of 2006 and serves as the Program Director overseeing buyer education, qualification, and closing processes as well as rehabilitation for the Homebuyer Initiated Program. Staci has experience in nonprofit administration; program development, implementation and evaluation; financial management; contract management; and computer systems support. Outside her work with the CLCLT, Staci has facilitated workshops on community land trusts and homeowner engagement for NeighborWorks® America and the National CLT Network. Staci received her Bachelor of Arts in Dietetics from the College of St. Scholastica and lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Equitable Development I - Creating Communities of Opportunity

Equitable development is an approach to creating healthy, vibrant, communities of opportunity. Generally included under the equitable development umbrella are inclusionary housing programs, housing trust funds and transit oriented development. Equitable development initiatives can be a natural fit for CLTs and other long-term affordable housing programs and a great way to increase the reach of your organization’s impact—the trick is figuring out how engage with and participate in ED initiatives. This course will provide a high-level overview of the concepts underlying equitable development and describe ways that you can incorporate your program into equitable development initiatives happening in your community.

Event Speakers

India Pierce Lee

Program Director for Neighborhoods, Housing and Community DevelopmentCleveland Foundation

India Pierce Lee joined the Cleveland Foundation in 2006 as program director for neighborhoods, housing and community development. She oversees the foundation's Greater University Circle Initiative, a unique multi-institutional anchor-based partnership engaged in catalytic projects to revitalize neighborhoods that include transportation, wealth building and economic inclusion, employer-assisted housing, and community engagement. India is a graduate of the Louis Stokes Fellowship in Community Development from the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University, where she obtained a Master of Science degree in social administration and completed Loeb Fellowship from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University.

Michael Spotts

Senior Policy AnalystEnterprise Community Partners

Michael Spotts is a Senior Policy Analyst for Enterprise Community Partners. He joined the Public Policy team in August 2009. In his position at Enterprise, he conducts research and analysis of affordable housing and community development policies, and manages Enterprise’s federal transit-oriented development policy activities. He serves as Vice-Chair of the Arlington County (VA) Affordable Housing Study working group, a member of the County’s Community Development Citizen’s Advisory Committee, and a member of the Board of Directors for the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing.
Michael graduated with a Masters of Science in Public Policy and Management from the Heinz College at Carnegie Mellon University. Prior experience in the community development field includes work with the Housing Assistance Council, Sustainable Pittsburgh, Allegheny County (PA) Economic Development, and the Rural Local Initiatives Support Corporation. Michael graduated Summa Cum Laude from Dickinson College in 2006, and received a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Community and Economic Development from the Pennsylvania State University in 2008.

Patrick Maier

Executive DirectorInnovative Housing Institute

Patrick Maier is the Executive Director of the Innovative Housing Institute (IHI), a nonprofit consulting organization that is a nationally recognized leader in the field of inclusionary housing. The Institute provides research, consultation, and information on the best practices to local and state governments faced with housing affordability challenges. IHI is currently preparing the Regional Housing Plan for the Baltimore Region’s Opportunity Collaborative, a federal Sustainable Communities Initiative Grantee. Under Mr. Maier’s direction, IHI is the lead partner of the National Inclusionary Housing Conference, which serves to provide the educational and inspirational leadership of the Inclusionary Housing Movement.

First Mortgage Technical Course

This course is all about building and maintaining successful partnerships with lenders in order to make the first-mortgage approval process more successful (and your life a little easier). From learning what you need to bring to a meeting with lenders, to the basics of underwriting and Fannie Mae compliance, this hands-on course will give you the tools to work with both national and regional banks in your community.

Event Speaker

Michael Brown

PartnerBurlington Associates in Community Development

Michael Brown is a Partner in Burlington Associates in Community Development, LLC, a national consulting group with a major focus on shared-equity homeownership. Michael helped establish one of the first CLTs in the country in eastern Tennessee in the early 1980’s and later served as the co-director of the Institute for Community Economics. For the past 17 years, Michael has provided technical assistance to over 60 new and existing CLTs, with services ranging from feasibility analysis and business planning, to program design and implementation, to adding commercial properties to CLT portfolios, to building financial and political support for community land trusts. Michael lives with his life partner in rural Collegeville Township in Minnesota.

CLTs and Limited Equity Housing Cooperatives

Join us in learning the history of housing coops. Explore the elegance of blending limited equity coop development with the CLT model. We’ll look at appropriate uses of the coop model and the circumstances under which they make sense or don’t, as the case may be. The session includes: photos, history, current uses, questions, answers and discussion.

Event Speaker

Sandy Bishop

Executive DirectorLopez Community Land Trust

Sandy Bishop, lclt@rockisland.com, serves as Executive Director of Lopez Community Land Trust (LCLT). She co-founded LCLT in 1989 and served as the founding executive director. For the past 20 years she has done project management for local community based developments as well as four affordable housing neighborhoods - all of which are limited equity cooperatives on CLT land. The first affordable housing project was considered the premiere community land trust project on the west coast and was featured in the New York Times in 1993. She was honored during the 2010 GreenBuild conference as the winner of the Home Depot Award of Excellence for Affordable Housing Built Responsibly.

The Network recently issued a call to the field to engage in collective dialogue about our diverse theories of change and how we put them into practice in our programs, contracts, and practices. This session will answer this call through a facilitated discussion among practitioners. Participants will learn about the relative merits of ground leases and deed covenants, identify the theories of change that undergird their decisions, and discuss how legal mechanisms can be used to translate their goals for their homeownership programs.

“Deed Restrictions and Community Land Trust Ground Leases: Two Methods of Establishing Affordable Homeownership Restrictions” by David Abromowitz and Kirby White in The Community Land Trust Reader (pp 327-334).

Event Speaker

David Abromowitz

Principal Goulston & Storrs

David Abromowitz met two guys named Chuck at the Institute for Community Economics in 1985, and ended up involved with community land trusts ever since. He splits his time between being a director (principal) in the law firm Goulston & Storrs in Boston, a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress in Washington DC, and an active board member of YouthBuild USA. In January 2008, he wrote the Center for American Progress’s “Great American Dream Neighborhood Stabilization Fund” proposal, which became the basis for the Neighborhood Stabilization Program enacted by Congress later that year, funding nearly $7 billion for communities hard hit by foreclosures. A frequent columnist, his pieces have appeared in the Huffington Post, Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times online, Baltimore Sun, Detroit Free Press, La Opinion, AOLnews online, and any place else an editor is willing to publish his opinions. And he is a proud New Jersey native.

Roots of the CLT

Learn about the history of the ideas, people, and events that shaped the present day community land trust. What are the core values under-pinning the model? Who were the people who developed the ownership structure? Why are the operating principles so durable? Understanding our roots helps us to be more resilient and effective advocates.

Event Speakers

Tony Pickett

Vice President – Master Site DevelopmentUrban Land Conservancy

Tony Pickett is a LEED accredited professional with over 25 years of real estate experience in planning, design, financing and implementation of large scale mixed use urban redevelopment initiatives. He is currently V.P. of Master Site Development at the Urban Land Conservancy, leading efforts to create long term community benefits with authentic local resident engagement. He is now guiding development efforts for ULC’s largest TOD vacant land acquisition; the 9.4 acre Park Hill Village West site, located along Denver’s East Commuter Rail line now in construction. Tony is a graduate of the Cornell University School of Architecture, Art and Planning.

Lisa Byers

Executive DirectorOPAL Community Land Trust

Lisa Byers has been the Executive Director of OPAL (Of People And Land) Community Land Trust on Orcas Island in Washington State since January 1996. In that community of 3,300 households, OPAL has sustained a membership base and active support from more than 15% of the island’s population and now provides housing for almost 6% of the year-round population. Lisa has led OPAL’s board of trustees through annual fundraising efforts that have yielded more than $4 million from individuals over the past ten years. She was a co-founder of the Northwest Community Land Trust Coalition and the National CLT Network, and served as the first President of the Board of the National CLT Network from 2006-2008. Lisa has led her own organization through the development of three strategic plans, and facilitated the development of strategic plans for other organizations. She has presented trainings and provided a range of consulting services for community land trusts, and been a community land trust leaseholder and homeowner since 1999.

Michael Brown

PartnerBurlington Associates in Community Development

Michael Brown is a Partner in Burlington Associates in Community Development, LLC, a national consulting group with a major focus on shared-equity homeownership. Michael helped establish one of the first CLTs in the country in eastern Tennessee in the early 1980’s and later served as the co-director of the Institute for Community Economics. For the past 17 years, Michael has provided technical assistance to over 60 new and existing CLTs, with services ranging from feasibility analysis and business planning, to program design and implementation, to adding commercial properties to CLT portfolios, to building financial and political support for community land trusts. Michael lives with his life partner in rural Collegeville Township in Minnesota.

CLT Storytelling Competition

Stories—whether happy or sad, funny or infuriating—can change the way that we see and understand the world, relate to others and make decisions. Honing our collective storytelling skills will help us to learn from one another, to become more effective fundraisers, to recruit more partners and to promote the adoption of the CLT model. The first part of this session will focus on understanding the elements of good storytelling. The second part of the session will be a live storytelling competition. There will be prizes!

Event Speaker

Beth Sorce

Community & Capacity Building ManagerNational Community Land Trust Network

Beth Sorce currently serves as the Community and Capacity Building Manager for the National CLT Network and brings more than 10 years of affordable housing and shared experience to the organization. Based out of Boulder, CO, Beth earned her master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of New Orleans and has worked as an urban planner with GCR, Inc. and a Community Development Finance Fellow with Providence Community Housing in New Orleans and as the Director of Training at the Urban Homesteading Assistance Board (UHAB) in New York City. In addition to her work experience, Beth has conducted research on the role of CLTs in weak market cities, in the commercial realm and in the development and preservation of Low Income Housing Tax Credit Projects.

Advocacy and Organizing: More Critical than Ever

Constituent and practitioner-based advocacy and organizing has never been more important. Critical housing issues are being debated at the national, state and local level, and our organizations have an incredible opportunity to be a collective voice for equity and justice in housing policy. Come join a discussion about the steps your organization can take to be effective in the policy arena. We’ll discuss the basics of mobilizing your constituents, educating your elected officials and building strategic alliances that can help you win real policy change. Given the drastic funding cuts being proposed and enacted across the county, advocacy and organizing has never been more important to your organization and the families and communities you serve. Join us to discuss how we can all be more effective in this work.

Event Speakers

Sandra McNeill

Executive DirectorTRUST South LA

Sandra McNeill has served as the Executive Director of TRUST South LA since 2007. She holds a M.A. in Urban Planning from University of California-Los Angeles, and has an extensive background in community activism. Since 1995, Sandra has collaborated with other community organizers to found Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE) where she helped found the Figueroa Corridor Coalition for Economic Justice. She has provided leadership to campaigns challenging developers, universities and the city to create more equitable development plans for South Central neighborhoods. Prior to moving to Los Angeles, Sandra worked in adult education in Seattle, Washington. In 2006, Ms. McNeill joined TRUST South LA after living in Oaxaca, Mexico for two years with her two daughters.

Ethan Handelman

Vice President for Policy and AdvocacyNational Housing Conference

Ethan directs NHC's policy and advocacy agenda focused on advancing federal housing policy to assist low- and moderate-income people, strengthening the nation's housing finance system, restoring neighborhoods, advocating for housing policy during tax and budgetary reforms, and improving the coordination of housing, transportation and energy policy. He has testified before Congress and speaks and writes regularly on housing issues. Ethan joined NHC in March, 2011, after leading the advisory practice at Recap Real Estate Advisors, assisting public- and private-sector clients to understand and shape the affordable housing financial and policy environment. Ethan received his MA in International Relations from Harvard University and holds a BA in Political Science from University of Michigan. He serves on the board of Housing Unlimited, a nonprofit housing provider in Montgomery County, Maryland.

Diane Linn

Executive DirectorProud Ground

Diane Linn joined Proud Ground, the Portland metro area community land trust, as the new Executive Director in December 2013. She served as Director of Ritter Center, servicing to low-income and homeless families in Marin County, California. Diane is former elected Chair and Commissioner in Multnomah County, Oregon. She was Director of the Office of Neighborhood Involvement for the City of Portland and the Executive Director of Oregon NARAL. Ms Linn is a native of Portland, Oregon and has worked to improve conditions and build community for vulnerable and under-served families throughout her career.

Accurate Appraisals

Why is it sometimes difficult to get an accurate appraisal? What do you do with appraisals gone wrong? This course will teach you, soup to nuts, about what to look for in an appraisal, some of the key challenges when working with appraisers and how to prevent and cope with inaccurate appraisals.

Event Speaker

Julie Brunner

Housing ManagerOPAL Community Land Trust

Julie has been the Housing Manager for OPAL Community Land Trust since 2002. In that capacity, Julie manages resident and homebuyer policies, project financing, resident applications, mortgage financing and homebuyer education instruction. In addition to working for OPAL, Julie is a consultant specializing in CLTs and homeownership programs and has been teaching courses for the National Community Land Trust since 2006. Julie has worked in the field of affordable housing since 1995 and prior to that in social service and international economic development. She has a B.A. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and a Master of City and Regional Planning from Rutgers University. Julie lives with her husband and two daughters on Orcas Island in Washington.

CLT Board Development

The tripartite board of the “classic CLT presents a unique set of strengths and challenges for recruiting, training and integrating individuals who come to the board from different backgrounds and with different interests. This intermediate-level seminar will examine strategies that have proven effective in building CLT boards that are cooperative, cohesive, effective and productive.

Event Speakers

Brenda Torpy

Chief Executive OfficerChamplain Housing Trust

Brenda Torpy is the CEO at Champlain Housing Trust and has 34 years experience in the affordable housing field starting with rural community development and affordable housing advocacy in northern Vermont. As the Community and Economic Development Office’s first housing Director for the City of Burlington, Brenda worked on the development of the Burlington Community Land Trust, now Champlain Housing Trust, and served on its Board of Directors. In 1991, she joined the staff as Executive Director. The Champlain Housing Trust is the nation’s largest community land trust with over 5,000 members, 80 employees and 2,600 affordable homes in northwest Vermont, including 530 in their shared appreciation homeownership portfolio along with multiple non-profit facilities, retail and commercial tenants. Under Brenda’s leadership, CHT was selected as the 2008 winner of the UN World Habitat Award for the Global North for its leadership in the development of the CLT model of permanently affordable and community-controlled housing. Brenda has also worked for the Vermont Housing Finance Agency as Development Director, and coordinated the $21 million tenant-led buyout of Northgate Apartments, 336 apartments that needed extensive rehabilitation and reinvestment to assure continued affordability. She serves on the Board of Northgate Resident Ownership Corporation and on Vermont’s Governor’s Housing Council.

Connie Chavez

National Community Land Trust Network

Connie Chavez has over 15 years experience in administrative management for non-profit organizations. Connie was with Sawmill Community Land Trust in Albuquerque for 10 years, until the spring of 2013, where she was appointed Associate Director in 2004 and Executive Director in October, 2005. She was the Portfolio Manager/Information Systems Manager for the New Mexico Community Development Loan Fund, a state-wide loan fund for small business and non-profit groups. She grew up in the Sawmill/Wells Park Neighborhood and holds both a historical perspective and a future vision for the area. She is the mother of two lovely daughters, and three very special granddaughters.

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Show me the Money: Increasing Success with Funding and Financing

Navigating public and private funding sources can be complex and overwhelming—especially as competition increases due to limited funds. The first half of this course will provide an overview of the Federal Home Loan Bank’s Affordable Housing Program including tips on how best to tap this resource and an update on how the new HOME rules are affecting some permanently affordable housing programs. The second half of the course will focus on fostering strong relationships with financing sources such as the Institute for Community Economics (ICE) and the CapNexus project at Partners for Common Good.

Event Speakers

Damon Allen

Senior Vice President & Community Investment OfficerFederal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati

Damon V. Allen is a Senior Vice President and the Community Investment Officer for the Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati (the FHLBank). His responsibilities include oversight and administration of the FHLBank’s Housing and Community Investment Department. Damon joined the FHLBank in 1999 as the manager of the Credit Financial Analysis division within the FHLBank’s Credit Services department. After several years in the Credit Services Department he joined the Housing & Community Investment Department in 2008. Prior to joining the FHLBank, Damon worked briefly for FedEx and served four years as a Captain in the U.S. Air Force. Damon holds a B.B.A. degree from Howard University (Washington, DC) and a M.B.A. from The University of Miami (Coral Gables, FL).

Wes Melville

Director of Strategy, CapNexusPartners for the Common Good

Wes Melville is the Director of Strategy for CapNexus, where he is responsible for managing platform growth and operations. Prior to community development investing, Wes spent several years in marketing and corporate strategy consulting, both in the U.S. and abroad. In this capacity, he has worked with a wide array of organizations including multinationals, startups, and nonprofits. Wes developed brand strategy and Olympic sponsorship campaigns tailored to the China market, and most recently worked as a strategic advisor on go-to-market campaigns for sustainability-aligned startups. Wes has an MBA from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill.

Andy Slettebak

Director, ICE Revolving Loan FundInstitute for Community Economics

Andy Slettebak is the Director of the Institute for Community Economics, an affiliate of the National Housing Trust. ICE/NHT is a national CDFI that finances shared-equity housing. Socially responsible investors have provided ICE’s lending capital for over 30 years.
Prior to ICE/NHT, Andy was the Economic Development Coordinator for the Campaign for Human Development, the Senior Architect for the City of Boston’s Public Facilities Department, a consultant and construction manager in Baltimore, Maryland, and a home improvement contractor in Washington, DC. Andy holds Masters in Architecture from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a BS in Architecture from Ohio State University.

John Hamilton

Founder & DirectorCity First Enterprises

John Hamilton is the founder and a Director of City First Enterprises of DC, a for-profit, FDIC-insured community development bank serving poor neighborhoods in Washington, D.C. with retail banking and small business, housing, and consumer loans. He is currently involved in capitalizing and launching a community land trust to support local development and preservation of thousands of units of workforce housing in Washington, DC. The initial capitalization for this project is projected at $75 million, funded through a combination of public and private investors. John served as the Secretary of the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration from 2001-2003 and as the Commissioner of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management from 1997-1999. He holds a law degree from the Indiana University School of Law – Bloomington and a BA from Harvard University.

Durable Collaborations, Lasting Solutions: How Cities and CLTs Can Partner to Accomplish Common Goals

In communities across the country, growing numbers of local governments are partnering with existing CLTs and even actively guiding and supporting the start-up of new ones. What does it take to make these relationships succeed? In this interactive three-hour session, participants will learn about the key elements of the City-CLT relationship, including examples of effective partnership from communities across the country, and walk out with the basic tools that local governments and CLTs need to develop strong, mutually beneficial, collaborative relationships.

Event Speakers

Jesse Beason

Director of Public AffairsNorthwest Health Foundation

As Director of Public Affairs at the Northwest Health Foundation, Jesse leads the Foundation’s work in communications, policy, government relations and partnership development. Prior to joining the Foundation in 2013, Jesse served as Executive Director of Proud Ground, the Northwest’s largest permanently affordable homeownership nonprofit, from 2008 to 2013. Previously, Jesse served as a Senior Policy Director for then-Commissioner, and former Portland Mayor Sam Adams. Jesse serves on the board of directors of the Regional Arts & Culture Council, National Community Land Trust Network and Portland Housing Advisory Commission. Jesse and his partner live in Portland with a cat and 50,000 honeybees.

Allison Handler

ConsultantSolid Ground Consulting

Allison Handler joined Solid Ground Consulting in 2009, bringing more than a decade of experience in housing, community development, land use planning and conservation. The former executive director of Portland Community Land Trust (now Proud Ground) from 2003-2008, Allison also founded and led the North-Missoula CDC’s Land Stewardship Program. Allison has broad experience in organizational development, strategy, and planning. She holds an MS from the University of Montana and a BA from Williams College. She has served on the boards of the National Community Land Trust Network, Missoula Urban Demonstration Project, and (currently) Growing Gardens. She lives in Portland, Oregon.

Equitable Development II – Practitioners' Perspective

This course builds upon the concepts introduced in Equitable Development (I) and focuses specifically on the lessons learned by practitioners who are working to ensure that CLTs and long-term affordable housing are part of new development in their cities. Practitioners from Denver, Durham, Minneapolis, and Washington, DC will all share their experiences organizing, implementing and working with municipal partners to administer equitable development programs.

Participating in Equitable Development (I) is not required for this course, though it is encouraged.

Event Speakers

Aaron Miripol

President & CEOUrban Land Conservancy

Aaron Miripol is the President and CEO of the Urban Land Conservancy, a supporting non-profit organization to the Denver Foundation. He has over 20 years experience running community development and affordable housing companies and has over seen more than $120 million in direct economic development, including 1,500 permanently affordable homes. Aaron is a Board Member for PLACE, a national organization made up of community development practitioners. He was a Goldsmith Scholar in International Studies at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and has his BA in History & International Studies from Macalester College, and a Masters in Public Policy from Johns Hopkins University.

Stephen Seed

Program and Outreach ManagerCity First Homes

Stephen Seed serves as Program Manager with City First Homes. He builds relationships with homebuyers and community partners to increase access to permanently, affordable homeownership in the District of Columbia. He is the first point of contact for potential homebuyers and serves as an advocate and resource through the home buying process. He approves mortgage eligibility and completes necessary steps for each mortgage loan closing. Previously, Stephen served as the Senior Program Officer at the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development (CNHED). Stephen received his Housing Development Finance Professional certification through the National Development Council. Stephen is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Selina Mack

Executive DirectorDurham Community Land Trustees

Selina Mack currently serves as the Executive Director of Durham Community Land Trustees, Inc. (DCLT) located in Durham, North Carolina. Selina joined DCLT in 1996, and has been a strong advocate for community stabilization, community organizing and ensuring access to affordable housing in Durham’s inner-city neighborhoods. She was instrumental in revising North Carolina’s General Statutes to give community land trust homeowners a special reduced property tax classification. Under her leadership, DCLT has expanded its housing portfolio to over 200 units – including homeownership, rental and commercial development. As executive director, Selina has presented trainings, site visits and consulted in the start-up of numerous CLT’s in the Southeastern US. She serves on several Boards and committees of the NC Community Development Initiative and NeighborWorks America. Selina hold a BSBA in Accounting and a Masters in Public Administration.

Staci Horwitz

Program DirectorCity of Lakes Community Land Trust

Staci Horwitz joined City of Lakes Community Land Trust (CLCLT) in March of 2006 and serves as the Program Director overseeing buyer education, qualification, and closing processes as well as rehabilitation for the Homebuyer Initiated Program. Staci has experience in nonprofit administration; program development, implementation and evaluation; financial management; contract management; and computer systems support. Outside her work with the CLCLT, Staci has facilitated workshops on community land trusts and homeowner engagement for NeighborWorks® America and the National CLT Network. Staci received her Bachelor of Arts in Dietetics from the College of St. Scholastica and lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Stewardship: Repairs and Replacement Reserves

How can your organization best support owners to maintain and repair their homes? This course will review various mechanisms for creating a reserve fund, including pros and cons of each method. A detailed how-to guide with recommendations and sample forms will be provided.

Event Speakers

Robert Dowling

Executive DirectorCommunity Home Trust

Robert Dowling began his affordable housing work in Durham in 1995 and assumed his current position as executive director of the Community Home Trust in late 1997. Robert then managed the organization’s transition to a community land trust in 2000. The Home Trust began implementing the inclusionary housing policies of the Town of Chapel Hill in 2001. Today, there are 236 homes in the Home Trust’s affordable housing inventory. He began his career as a teacher before moving into banking in New York City and Chicago. He completed an MBA in finance in 1986.

Emily Higgins

Director of HomeownershipChamplain Housing Trust

Emily Higgins is the Director of Homeownership at Champlain Housing Trust where she oversees a portfolio of over 555 shared-equity homes, as well as education, counseling, and a home repair loan fund. Emily focuses on new initiatives, outcomes and impact, grants and reporting, as well as strategic planning and stewardship. She has presented at numerous National Community Land Trust Network conferences, and participated in several large scale performance evaluations demonstrating the effectiveness of the shared equity model. Emily has worked at CHT since 2003.

Defining Success: Program Design and Evaluation for Healthy CLTs

We have a good idea of what success looks like for our CLT homebuyers but how do we define success for our organizations? What are the indicators of success for a healthy and sustainable organization in terms of finances, infrastructure, and reputation? How do we measure our efforts in order to determine if we’ve met the threshold of success? How can these indicators help us make smart, strategic decisions? Join this important hands-on working session to help your organization and the broader CLT field develop indicators of strong and effective organizations, explore appropriate target setting for these indicators, and learn how your organization can improve your collection and use of this information.

Event Speaker

Brett Theodos

Senior Research AssociateUrban Institute

Brett Theodos is a Senior Research Associate with the Metropolitan Housing and Communities Policy Center at the Urban Institute. In that capacity, he has conducted several performance evaluations of government programs and independent research demonstrations. His expertise is in affordable housing, economic and community development, access to capital for low- individuals and businesses, and geographic mobility. Mr. Theodos is currently co-directing an evaluation of "shared equity" homeownership opportunities. Before joining the Urban Institute, Mr. Theodos was contracted by NeighborWorks America and the McAuley Institute to assist in designing the Success Measures Data System, a participatory internet-based management and evaluation system for not-for-profit groups. He received his MPP from Georgetown University and BA in Economics and Political Science from Northwestern University.

Ground Lease Feedback

The Network needs your help! Now that the model ground lease, revised and released in 2011, has been in use for several years, it’s time to revisit what’s working and what needs improvement. This session is your opportunity to share your experience using the ground lease with Network staff and consultants so that we can make the next iteration even stronger.

Event Speaker

Julie Brunner

Housing ManagerOPAL Community Land Trust

Julie has been the Housing Manager for OPAL Community Land Trust since 2002. In that capacity, Julie manages resident and homebuyer policies, project financing, resident applications, mortgage financing and homebuyer education instruction. In addition to working for OPAL, Julie is a consultant specializing in CLTs and homeownership programs and has been teaching courses for the National Community Land Trust since 2006. Julie has worked in the field of affordable housing since 1995 and prior to that in social service and international economic development. She has a B.A. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and a Master of City and Regional Planning from Rutgers University. Julie lives with her husband and two daughters on Orcas Island in Washington.

Stewardship Standards for Affordable Homeownership Programs

Programs across the country trying to achieve the same goals use different models with different names, including deed-restricted homeownership, community land trusts, shared-appreciation loans, or limited equity housing cooperatives, but share common challenges. If you work in this sector, you know the difficulties programs face in assuring that homeowners don’t end up in predatory loans, protecting the physical asset in the event of foreclosure, ensuring buyers understand their affordability restrictions, and planning for adequate monitoring and enforcement. Over the past year, Cornerstone Partnership, with support from the National CLT Network has been working with practitioners to lead an exciting new initiative to develop stewardship standards for the affordable homeownership sector. Hear highlights about the draft standards and join us in a conversation to understand how the standards can strengthen your program and help you make the case for supporting sustainable homeownership programs.

Event Speakers

Rachel Silver

DirectorCornerstone Partnership

As Director of Cornerstone Partnership, Rachel Silver brings more than 15 years of experience working with public and private agencies to create new affordable housing opportunities, with a focus on innovative ownership models, buyer selection and education, and post-purchase stewardship. Prior to joining Cornerstone, she worked as a housing consultant, served as the Housing Development Manager for the City of Alameda, California, and held positions in nonprofit housing development, real estate finance, and teaching. She received her BA degree from Williams College in Massachusetts and her MA in City Planning from the University of California at Berkeley.

Hong Ly

Senior Program OfficerCornerstone Partnership

Hong is Senior Program Officer at Cornerstone Partnership, an initiative of Capital Impact Partners. She brings over 10 years of experience working in the housing and community development field. She began her career as an Americorps VISTA in Lowell, MA before joining Abt Associates as an evaluation consultant. She later developed affordable housing and commercial real estate projects at Urban Edge CDC in Boston. Hong received her BA from Carleton College and MBA from Boston University.

Navigating the Network

Come meet Network staff and put faces to the emails! Whether you are new to the Network, a long-time member, or just looking to learn more, this session will introduce you to the history of the Network, our current staff and programs, and the benefits Network membership. Most importantly, this session is an opportunity for you to speak directly with staff and share your thoughts on how the Network can best support your work. We’ll have treats to share!

Event Speakers

Jessica Grant

Operations & Member ServicesNational CLT Network

Jessica joined the CLT Network in the beginning of 2008, bringing with her over nine years experience in nonprofit administration. She previously lived in Berkeley, California, working as the Director of Operations for Global Routes. This innovative nonprofit specializes in experiential education in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Prior to moving to Portland, Oregon, Jessica worked for Yosemite Institute as the Site Manager of Crane Flat. She oversaw all daily operations at this environmental education campus, located in northern Yosemite National Park. Just prior to working for the CLT Network, Jessica worked for Outside In, where she managed a county funded program for homeless youth in downtown Portland. In addition to her work with nonprofits, Jessica spent two years working in the classrooms of the Berkeley Unified School District.

Emily Thaden

Research & Policy Development ManagerNational CLT Network

Emily Thaden joined the CLT Network in December of 2011. Previously, Emily built and managed a new shared equity homeownership program called Our House at The Housing Fund (THF), a Community Development Financial Institution in Nashville, TN. During her two years at THF, funding for the program’s first 100 homes had been secured, the development of 22 homes was completed, and stewardship policies and practices were established. Additionally, Emily acted as a research consultant for the Network conducting the 2009 CLT Foreclosure and Delinquency Survey and The 2011 Comprehensive CLT Survey. Her work on CLTs has been published by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy in Landlines and working papers and by the National Housing Institute in Shelterforce. Emily completed her doctorate in Community Research & Action at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College. Her dissertation focused on low-income and minority homeownership and the solution of shared equity homeownership.

Melora Hiller

Executive DirectionNational CLT Network

Melora Hiller has over 20 years of experience working in the world of affordable housing and has worked with numerous CLTs in the Northwest. Prior to becoming the Executive Director, she consulted with nonprofit organizations, foundations and local governments in areas related to organizational development, nonprofit capacity building, strategic planning, and program development. Before becoming a consultant, Melora managed a statewide capacity-building program for housing and community development organizations, including: designing and implementing a technical and organizational development training program for professional staff and board members; overseeing investments in organizational core support for 15 nonprofits; brokering technical assistance capacity grants through an assessment and joint problem-solving approach and referral to appropriate technical consultants. Melora earned her Master’s degree in public administration at Seattle University’s Institute for Public Service. She has served on numerous nonprofit boards and school committees and is a graduate of Leadership Tomorrow. Melora is the founding board chair of the Capitol Hill Housing Foundation.

Beth Sorce

Community & Capacity Building ManagerNational Community Land Trust Network

Beth Sorce currently serves as the Community and Capacity Building Manager for the National CLT Network and brings more than 10 years of affordable housing and shared experience to the organization. Based out of Boulder, CO, Beth earned her master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of New Orleans and has worked as an urban planner with GCR, Inc. and a Community Development Finance Fellow with Providence Community Housing in New Orleans and as the Director of Training at the Urban Homesteading Assistance Board (UHAB) in New York City. In addition to her work experience, Beth has conducted research on the role of CLTs in weak market cities, in the commercial realm and in the development and preservation of Low Income Housing Tax Credit Projects.

A Discussion of Race: From the Streets of Dreams to the Present

This session will showcase a documentary, Streets of Dreams, which presents the significance and transformative possibility of community land trusts to historically disenfranchised African American communities in the south. Six years later, practitioners from the film will discuss the challenges and outcomes of working to address entrenched racial oppression through CLT initiatives. Collectively, participants will discuss current race dynamics taking place and affecting their local communities and organizations.

Event Speakers

LaShawn Hoffman

Mr. LaShawn M. Hoffman serves as the Chief Executive Officer for the Pittsburgh Community Improvement Association, Inc. (PCIA) PCIA is committed to rebuilding Atlanta’s historic Pittsburgh neighborhood as a safe, healthy economically viable community that provides housing and support services for families with limited incomes while welcoming people from all backgrounds. Through his leadership, this neighborhood-based community development corporation is preparing for thoughtful development, both human and physical, as the Pittsburgh community embraces a city that is constantly changing.
With more than 10 years of active service to Atlanta’s local and regional organizations, LaShawn has built an exceptional record of experience and leadership. Reflecting his strong commitment to economic development in Atlanta, Mr. Hoffman serves on many community boards and county panels. His service includes the Fulton County Community Development Block Grants Citizen Panel, board treasurer for the Atlanta Community Land Trust Collaborative and currently the President of the Atlanta Housing Association of Neighborhood-based Developers (AHAND) a trade association comprised of over 30 Atlanta based community development corporations.

Evelyn Dobson

Executive DirectorDelray Beach Community Land Trust, Inc.

Evelyn Dobson is a resident of Delray Beach, FL for more than 38 years and has served as a community advocate for change that significantly impact minorities through her years of service on various boards and committees. As the Executive Director of the Delray Beach Community Land Trust for more than four years, the organization has experienced substantial growth and continues to provide affordable housing opportunities for very-low to moderate income households. The DBCLT is one of seven CLT’s in the southeast region and its housing base is comprised of 45% African American, 38% Haitian, 16% Caucasian and 1% Hispanic.

Charlotte Jackson

Deputy DirectorLower 9th Ward NENA

As Deputy Director, Jackson managed Lower 9th Ward NENA’s first Community Land Trust project. She effectively develops programs and policies to meet the needs of the Lower 9th Ward community. Beyond NENA, Jackson has played a role in shaping key matters impacting Community Land Trusts in New Orleans, while serving on the Crescent City Community Land Trust board, focusing on efforts to gain broader support. Prior to NENA, she managed various programs serving community needs in housing and economic development over a span of twenty years. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Loyola University.

Jason Reece

Director of ResearchThe Kirwan Institute at The Ohio State University

Jason is the Director of Research for the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity at The Ohio State University. Jason was formerly the director of the opportunity communities program and has worked for the Institute since 2003. His work involves outreach, education, advocacy and policy research on issues related to fair housing/opportunity based housing, community development, neighborhood revitalization, regional equity and GIS. He co-developed the methodology for opportunity mapping with john a. powell, a methodology which has been adopted or utilized by more than two dozen non-profit and philanthropic partners and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
His professional experience includes program administration, project management, program development, team & staff management, grant writing, strategic planning, research & policy consultation. Jason has directly managed more than $3 million in funded research and community based projects since 2007. He has extensive experience working in the non-profit sector and public sector at the city, regional and state level, and experience acting as a facilitator for both small and large group activities. He has assisted community organizations, philanthropic organizations, public agencies and other non-profit or faith based organizations in more than twenty states, recognized as a national expert in utilizing data and mapping to assist in social justice advocacy, community building and civic engagement.

Introduction to Resale Formulas

Resale formulas are an integral part of any CLT or permanently affordable homeownership program. They are what enable ongoing affordability generation after generation. While there are several types of resale formulas, each one can be customized to balance the unique wants and needs of a community and program. This session will highlight the elements that should be considered when adopting a resale formula for the first time as well as the basic functionality of the main types of formulas in use today.

Event Speaker

Julie Brunner

Housing ManagerOPAL Community Land Trust

Julie has been the Housing Manager for OPAL Community Land Trust since 2002. In that capacity, Julie manages resident and homebuyer policies, project financing, resident applications, mortgage financing and homebuyer education instruction. In addition to working for OPAL, Julie is a consultant specializing in CLTs and homeownership programs and has been teaching courses for the National Community Land Trust since 2006. Julie has worked in the field of affordable housing since 1995 and prior to that in social service and international economic development. She has a B.A. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and a Master of City and Regional Planning from Rutgers University. Julie lives with her husband and two daughters on Orcas Island in Washington.

Using Data to Work Smart, Tell Our Stories, and Grow the Movement

The HomeKeeper National Data Hub provides unprecedented access to data on affordable homeownership programs in the US. Learn more about the project and the highlights of the most recent analyses.

Hear from both users and staff how high-quality data can be used to improve program operation, evaluate performance, document success, and support policy advocacy.

Event Speakers

Jim Mischler-Philbin

CLT DirectorOne Roof Community Housing

Jim Mischler-Philbin is the Community Land Trust Director at One Roof Community Housing in Duluth, MN, where he has worked since 2000. Jim has served on the National CLT Network Board since its inception in 2006, serving as president in 2008-2009. Jim is also a community land trust leaseholder/homeowner.

Thane Maxwell

ConsultantCornerstone Partnership

Thane Maxwell is a consultant with Cornerstone Partnership and the data analyst for the HomeKeeper National Data HUB, which collects and analyzes performance data from shared-equity homeownership programs across the country.

Tiffany Eng

HomeKeeper Product ManagerCornerstone Partnership

Tiffany Eng has been leading the HomeKeeper program since August 2010 and currently oversees product development, marketing and member outreach. She brings over 15 years of experience providing organizations around the country with training and technical assistance in designing and implementing successful asset building programs. In addition, she has been a licensed California REALTORⓇ since 2007 and is a passionate advocate for first-time homebuyers. Tiffany has a masters in City and Regional Planning from UC Berkeley and an undergraduate degree from Carleton College.

CLT Networks Step Up a Gear in Europe

With the growing English CLT community the UK CLT Network has moved from being hosted to become a fully independent charity. Three years funding has been secured, allowing planned continued growth and grant support to new CLTs which includes the support of 20 urban projects.

Brussels’s CLT, the first in mainland Europe was formed in 2012. Since then, the Brussels metropolitan government has funded two first pilot projects, guaranteed about $2.75m of investment annually for the next four years (about 30 units per year), and enshrined the CLT in the Housing Code (legal framework). The outlook is positive, the foundations laid and interest developing at a European level.

Event Speakers

Andy Schofield

Executive DirectorEast London CLT

Andy is the interim Director of Housing at the East London Community Land Trust. He has a background in urban regeneration and social enterprise in the UK. He runs Cocreate, a consulting cooperative that helps organisations to meet social, economic and environmental challenges and needs. Previously he was Director of Special Projects at Pinnacle psg, a private provider of services to affordable housing, where he had a particular interest in the relationship between housing and employment issues. He is excited by the potential of CLTs in the UK and looks forward to learning from the US experience.

Thomas Dawance

Project Coordinator Brussels CLT

Thomas Dawance is project developer at the Community Land Trust - Brussels (CLTB), the first CLT of the Belgian’s Capital but also of all Continental Europe. The Brussels’ CLT is founded and funded since 2012 and is developing several housing projects since then. As architect, Thomas Dawance is managing the realization of the very first project. Before joining the CLT team, he actively supported the recognition of the CLT model as he has advisor of the Minister of Housing. He has also been working in the Urban Research Center of the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB).

David Graham

Chair UK Network

David is Chair of the National Community Land Trust Network which supports over 160 community groups throughout England. He is also Chair of the Lyvennet Community Trust which has developed an affordable housing project comprising rental, shared ownership and self–build local occupancy housing. In addition he is Chair of the Lyvennet Community Pub Ltd, a co-operative which owns the village pub and community hub.
In June last year he was awarded an MBE; Member of the Order of the British Empire by the Queen for services to the Lyvennet community. David has recently retired following 33 years’ delivering and managing highway services in Cumbria, working in both the public and private sector. He is a civil engineer with a wealth of experience in contract, project, finance and change management.

Hannah Fleetwood

Programme OfficerUK Network

Hannah Fleetwood has worked with the UK’s National CLT Network since January 2012. She manages the CLT Fund grants programme, a programme of early-stage grant funding to support the development and capacity-building of new CLTs across England and Wales. Over 100 new organisations have come through the programme in the past 5 years, and the Network is about to launch a new £0.5 million facility to continue this programme of support until 2019. Hannah also works closely with CLTs to advise on their governance and incorporation, and to facilitate peer-to-peer learning between community-led housing projects. She also continues to develop the Network’s outreach to individual communities and partners through events such as the annual CLT Awards and by working on new resources and training for the sector.
Hannah graduated with a Master I in Law from the Université de Paris II in July 2011, having specialised in Commercial Law and Credit Systems. She also holds a BA Hons in Law from the University of Cambridge. When she’s not working with CLTs, Hannah is supporting a local church in East London to redevelop its underused crypt into an enterprise hub, sound studio and art gallery, and spends a lot of time planning her next holiday. She’s a travel nut and likes nothing better than to eat her way around the world; she’s a particular fan of China.

Stephen Hill

Board Member National CLT Network & UK Cohousing Network

Stephen is an independent public interest practitioner, with public and private sector experience of planning and delivering housing, mixed-use development, urban extensions, new settlements, and community-led neighbourhood regeneration. He is the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (real estate)’ representative on the UK Government’s Housing Policy Sounding Board. He has been a champion of land tenure and tax reform, and all forms of citizen led housing, and is currently visiting the USA and Canada on a Churchill Trust Travelling Fellowship studying CLTs and the relationship between the ‘state’ and community organising. He is a long term advisor to the UK’s first urban CLT, East London CLT.
Contact: stephenhill@futureplanners.net and +44 7795 813 080

Universal Design: Building Housing That Looks Great and Works for Everyone!

Good design is one of the foundations of affordable housing. Our homes need to be energy efficient, durable and built to serve a wide range of households. CLT’s that are working with veterans and/or serving families with accessibility needs are finding that the concepts of Universal Design make good sense for all. This session explores what Universal Design principles are, and how they are incorporated in Green Building Standards. We will look at tools and concepts for creating attractive, barrier free housing on a tight budget.

Event Speaker

Amy Wright

Consultant

Amy Wright is a consultant in the design, finance and development of permanently affordable housing communities. Prior to her consulting work she was the Director of Development for two Vermont non-profit organizations, Cathedral Square and Lake Champlain Housing. She has developed housing that responds to a broad range of community needs, including resident controlled housing, limited equity cooperatives, assisted living, service enriched senior housing, and single family homes. Ms. Wright was one of the founding members of the Burlington Community Land Trust (now Champlain Housing Trust) and is a member of the VT Housing and Conservation Coalition. She has served on the Board of the Chittenden Bank Socially Responsible Banking Fund, Preservation Trust of Vermont, Thelma Maple Cooperative and Vermont Works for Women. She holds a B.S. from Cornell University and currently lives in Burlington, Vermont.

This half-day workshop is offered by the Network, National Housing Conference’s Center for Housing Policy, Cornerstone Partnership, and the Innovative Housing Institute. It is designed for practitioners of inclusionary housing programs as well as community land trusts that partner with, want to partner with, or are advocating for inclusionary housing programs. The session will address the benefits and challenges of promoting lasting affordability in inclusionary housing policies. Based upon an applied research project of 25 inclusionary housing programs, in-depth discussions on inclusionary housing policy design, program implementation, nonprofit-government partnerships, and current challenges in the field will take place. Information shared during the session will inform future resource development for practitioners by national organizations.

Event Speakers

Robert Hickey

Senior Research AssociateCenter for Housing Policy

Robert Hickey is a senior research associate with the Center for Housing Policy – the research affiliate of the National Housing Conference in Washington, DC. He is currently undertaking a Network-sponsored research project of the challenges and opportunities for community land trusts in transit-oriented development. Also at the Center, Robert is conducting a national scan of contemporary issues and best practices in inclusionary housing policy, and an analysis of how housing and transportation costs are affecting lower-income households in the largest metropolitan areas. Before the Center, Robert worked as a planning and economic consultant at Strategic Economics, where he wrote on policy and planning strategies for creating affordable homes in transit-oriented communities for clients such as the Enterprise Foundation and San Francisco Foundation. More recently, he managed a comprehensive affordable housing initiative in Marin County, California. Robert holds a masters’ degree in city and regional planning from the University of California – Berkeley.

Patrick Maier

Executive DirectorInnovative Housing Institute

Patrick Maier is the Executive Director of the Innovative Housing Institute (IHI), a nonprofit consulting organization that is a nationally recognized leader in the field of inclusionary housing. The Institute provides research, consultation, and information on the best practices to local and state governments faced with housing affordability challenges. IHI is currently preparing the Regional Housing Plan for the Baltimore Region’s Opportunity Collaborative, a federal Sustainable Communities Initiative Grantee. Under Mr. Maier’s direction, IHI is the lead partner of the National Inclusionary Housing Conference, which serves to provide the educational and inspirational leadership of the Inclusionary Housing Movement.

Emily Thaden

Research & Policy Development ManagerNational CLT Network

Emily Thaden joined the CLT Network in December of 2011. Previously, Emily built and managed a new shared equity homeownership program called Our House at The Housing Fund (THF), a Community Development Financial Institution in Nashville, TN. During her two years at THF, funding for the program’s first 100 homes had been secured, the development of 22 homes was completed, and stewardship policies and practices were established. Additionally, Emily acted as a research consultant for the Network conducting the 2009 CLT Foreclosure and Delinquency Survey and The 2011 Comprehensive CLT Survey. Her work on CLTs has been published by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy in Landlines and working papers and by the National Housing Institute in Shelterforce. Emily completed her doctorate in Community Research & Action at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College. Her dissertation focused on low-income and minority homeownership and the solution of shared equity homeownership.

CLTs & Lease Purchase

Lease to purchase programs provide an avenue for CLTs to fulfill their mission and create affordable homeownership opportunities for credit-challenged buyers. Through this course, participants will acquire knowledge and practical tools for planning, developing and stewarding elements associated with lease to purchase programs.

Event Speakers

Miriam Axel-Lute

Editor and Associate DirectorShelterforce, National Housing Institute

Miriam is editor of Shelterforce and associate director of the National Housing Institute. Based in Albany, N.Y., she is a board member of the Community Loan Fund of the Capital Region and the Community Development Alliance of the Capital District, of which Albany's land trust is a member. She writes Looking Up, an award-winning column for Albany's alt-weekly, Metroland.

Staci Horwitz

Program DirectorCity of Lakes Community Land Trust

Staci Horwitz joined City of Lakes Community Land Trust (CLCLT) in March of 2006 and serves as the Program Director overseeing buyer education, qualification, and closing processes as well as rehabilitation for the Homebuyer Initiated Program. Staci has experience in nonprofit administration; program development, implementation and evaluation; financial management; contract management; and computer systems support. Outside her work with the CLCLT, Staci has facilitated workshops on community land trusts and homeowner engagement for NeighborWorks® America and the National CLT Network. Staci received her Bachelor of Arts in Dietetics from the College of St. Scholastica and lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Urban Agriculture

Urban agriculture and food security are increasingly salient issues in the community development arena. Join us as we explore the benefits and challenges of urban farming and discuss the multiple roles that CLTs are taking in supporting such projects. We will draw practical considerations and lessons learned from two case study organizations (Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative in Roxbury, MA and Athens Land Trust, in Athens, GA).

Event Speakers

Jeffrey Yuen

Impact Assessment CoordinatorNew Jersey Community Capital

Jeffrey is a recent graduate of the M.S. Urban Planning program at Columbia University with a concentration in housing and community development. His thesis research explored the performance of Land Trust organizations in addressing community garden land-tenure insecurity and the potential for further CLT/Urban Agriculture partnerships. His research interests also include anti-eviction community organizing and the role of CLTs, and other decommodified housing systems, in the foreclosure discourse.

Heather Benham

Executive DirectorAthens Land Trust

Heather Benham is currently the Executive Director for the Athens Land Trust, where she oversees the organization’s affordable housing program, community agriculture program and their land conservation program. She previously served as their Housing Director for 8 years, while the program grew from one single-family home to 52 single-family properties and 96 affordable rental units. She has an undergraduate degree in history from Hendrix College and a Masters in Historic Preservation and Juris Doctorate from the University of Georgia.

Harry Smith

Harry Smith is Director of Sustainable Economic Development at the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative (DSNI) and Director of Dudley Neighbors Inc. Community Land Trust. He has more than twenty years of experience in organizing to promote affordable housing and community economic development in Boston’s neighborhoods. Before coming to DSNI, Harry served as Director of Organizing and Community Planning at the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation and consulted with numerous community development and youth organizations on organizing, economic development, housing, and leadership initiatives. A graduate of Brown University, Harry has a Masters in Community Economic Development from Southern New Hampshire University.

Mergers and Collaborations

Nonprofit mergers involving CLTs, CDCs and even Habitat for Humanity affiliates are on the rise. A merger is sometimes the best way for two or more nonprofit organizations to combine their programs, assets and staffs for greater productivity and sustainability. But a merger is not the only option for collaboration—nor is it always best suited to preserving the values and protecting the beneficiaries of a CLT. This session will feature a consultant with extensive experience facilitating new structures for organizations interested working more closely together. We’ll also draw upon the experience of a successful CLT merger in Cleveland presenting a practical framework for planning the process and weighing the options for bringing multiple nonprofits together.

Event Speakers

Bob Harrington

Managing PartnerLa Pianna Consulting

Bob’s work embodies a deep commitment to helping organizations align around common goals to achieve demonstrable, sustainable results. Using proven methodologies and insights gained from years of practical experience, Bob works hand-in-hand with nonprofits and foundations to help them make data-informed decisions, create successful partnerships, and manage organizational change. Bob is a sought-after speaker on collaboration and strategic restructuring among nonprofits. Prior to joining La Piana Consulting, he was executive director of Children’s Garden of California until it merged with Sunny Hills Children’s Services; he then served as COO of the merged organization. He has extensive nonprofit management experience working in complex human services fields. Bob has an MSW from the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee and a BA in Psychology from the University of California at Davis.

Marge Misak

Land Trust Program DirectorNeighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland

Marge Misak is the Land Trust Program Director at Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland in Ohio, which was established in Fall 2011 as a result of a merger with the Community Land Trust of Greater Cleveland. Marge was a member of the Advisory Board of the National CLT Network’s CLT Academy from 2009-2012 and was chair of the Research and Publications Committee. She has led classes and participated in forums at the CLT Academy, Ohio CDC Association, Cleveland State University Forum series and Cleveland City Club. Marge has a Bachelor of Science of Journalism degree from Northwestern University and lives in Cleveland.

CLTs & Commercial Properties

Neighborhood-appropriate commercial properties are a vital component of community development and neighborhood revitalization strategies. They typically serve as cultural and social – as well as commercial and retail – hubs for the neighborhoods where they are located. As is the case with quality, affordable, owner-occupied housing, these commercial properties often are at risk of loss or conversion. For this reason, an increasing number of community land trusts are looking at expanding into commercial stewardship, with the goal to preserve key commercial properties and protect their use and availability (and perhaps even affordability) as long-term community assets. This session will consider critical issues regarding mission and goals, organizational capacity, project financing and stewardship requirements for commercial CLT projects.

Event Speakers

Alexandra Miller

PrincipalMiller Urban Consulting

Alexandra Miller is an urban planner and consultant from New Orleans, LA. She has worked with the Crescent City Community Land Trust on a commercial market and partnership study to help define their commercial CLT strategy, and continues to work with CCCLT on many other projects. Her firm also specializes in blight reduction strategies, community engagement, policy research, and spatial analysis.

Van Temple

Executive DirectorCrescent City Community Land Trust

Van Temple (van@ccclt.org) serves as Executive Director of the Crescent City Community Land Trust (CCCLT), bringing the benefits of the CLT approach to the City of New Orleans through commercial, residential and mixed-use development, and vacant land initiatives. Prior to CCCLT, Mr. Temple was Executive Director of the Diamond State Community Land Trust (Delaware), the first statewide community land trust, formed in 2006.
Mr. Temple is active in public policy at the local, state and national level with a focus on long-term investment of community development resources, FHA mortgage expansion, and multiplying the supply of permanently affordable housing.
Temple’s career spans four decades in community development, non-profit management and consulting, across eleven states, including a management career with the City of Dallas Texas, 1974-87.

Michael Monte

Chief Operations & Financial OfficerChamplain Housing Trust

Michael Monte is CHT’s Chief Operating and Financial Officer having joined the executive leadership team in December 2007. Michael was a founder of Burlington Community Land Trust and was a board member for Lake Champlain Housing, the two organizations that merged to form CHT. He has over 35 years of community and economic development experience. He worked at the City of Burlington’s Community and Economic Development Office (CEDO) from its creation and was its longest serving Director. Prior to CEDO, he was employed as Executive Director for several non-profit organizations. Michael is also a founder and partner of the independent community development consultant group, Burlington Associates.

Michael Brown

PartnerBurlington Associates in Community Development

Michael Brown is a Partner in Burlington Associates in Community Development, LLC, a national consulting group with a major focus on shared-equity homeownership. Michael helped establish one of the first CLTs in the country in eastern Tennessee in the early 1980’s and later served as the co-director of the Institute for Community Economics. For the past 17 years, Michael has provided technical assistance to over 60 new and existing CLTs, with services ranging from feasibility analysis and business planning, to program design and implementation, to adding commercial properties to CLT portfolios, to building financial and political support for community land trusts. Michael lives with his life partner in rural Collegeville Township in Minnesota.

For Lease: Rental Housing and Community Land Trusts

If CLTs are focused on homeownership, what’s all this talk about rental? This session will look at Sawmill and Athens Community Land Trusts and their experiences with affordable rental projects – why they do it and the lessons learned. If you are considering providing rental housing or if you want to compare your rental experiences with others, come join the discussion.

Event Speakers

Nancy Stangle

Athens Land Trust

Wade Patterson

Executive DirectorSawmill Community Land Trust

Wade Patterson has an MA in Community and Regional Planning from the University of New Mexico and a Masters in Folklore and Folklife from the University of Pennsylvania. He joined the Sawmill Community Land Trust staff in the summer of 2011 and began as Executive Director in April 2013. A fifteen year veteran of non-profit work, Wade is also an avid mountain biker and backcountry explorer.

Land Banks and Banking Land: Challenges and Opportunities for CLTs

In this session, we’ll explore two approaches to land banking. One is to work with municipal land banks—government organizations that acquire property and prepare it for reuse by clearing title, removing hazards, and eliminating other obstacles. Another is for CLTs themselves to “bank land,” acquiring property for their own reuse or to hold for future use by others. Hear the latest about the new land bank in Philadelphia made possible, in large part, by the efforts of the Women’s Community Revitalization Project!

Event Speakers

Van Temple

Executive DirectorCrescent City Community Land Trust

Van Temple (van@ccclt.org) serves as Executive Director of the Crescent City Community Land Trust (CCCLT), bringing the benefits of the CLT approach to the City of New Orleans through commercial, residential and mixed-use development, and vacant land initiatives. Prior to CCCLT, Mr. Temple was Executive Director of the Diamond State Community Land Trust (Delaware), the first statewide community land trust, formed in 2006.
Mr. Temple is active in public policy at the local, state and national level with a focus on long-term investment of community development resources, FHA mortgage expansion, and multiplying the supply of permanently affordable housing.
Temple’s career spans four decades in community development, non-profit management and consulting, across eleven states, including a management career with the City of Dallas Texas, 1974-87.

Jim Rokakis

DirectorThriving Communities Institute

Jim Rokakis, Director of Western Reserve Land Conservancy’s Thriving Communities Institute, is one of the nation’s leading experts on the foreclosure crisis and neighborhood revitalization. In his 33-year career in public service as a member of Cleveland City Council and then Cuyahoga County Treasurer, Jim was instrumental for many innovations, including the passage of a state law allowing for the creation of county land banks. As Director of Thriving Communities Institute, he has helped to raise over 180 million dollars for blight removal in Ohio’s communities. He earned his undergraduate degree at Oberlin College and his Juris Doctorate degree from Cleveland-Marshall School of Law.

Jill Feldstein

Jill Feldstein is Organizing Director for the Women's Community Revitalization Project (WCRP), a Philadelphia-based grassroots community development corporation committed to social and economic equity for low-income women and their families. WCRP is recognized for building high-quality affordable housing and successfully involving women in revitalizing communities. Jill oversees WCRP's policy and community engagement work. She staffs the Campaign to Take Back Vacant Land, a faith, labor and community coalition that won the creation a fair, transparent and accountable Philadelphia land bank in 2013. Jill also manages WCRP’s community land trust, dedicated to creating permanently affordable housing in a rapidly appreciating North Philadelphia neighborhood.

Mike Brady

Vice President of PolicyCenter for Community Progress

Michael Brady is a Senior Policy Advisor to the Center for Community Progress, where he is currently on a one year leave to assist in the development of the Detroit Land Bank Authority. In addition to his public policy work, Michael also provides capacity building and local technical assistance to partners in communities around the country on issues such as land banking, building removal, and code enforcement. Michael first worked with Community Progress in 2011 to research and analyze state land bank and foreclosure laws relative to national best practices, including assessments of land bank, redevelopment and housing authorities.
Before joining Community Progress full time, Michael worked as Legal & Policy Director for Michigan Community Resources, where he specialized in vacant property legal issues as part of the Detroit Vacant Property Campaign. Michael worked with community groups and local and county governments on pressing issues such as mortgage and tax foreclosure, nuisance abatement, dangerous building demolitions and community-led code enforcement. He's also worked for the Wayne County Land Bank, the Detroit Brownfield Redevelopment Authority and the Wayne County Nuisance Abatement Program.
Michael has a JD from Wayne State University Law School, a Graduate Certificate in Economic Development from Wayne State's Department of Geography and Urban Planning, and a BA in History and Spanish from the Residential College at the University of Michigan. He’s a Certified Housing Development Finance Professional through the National Development Council. Michael is a proud resident of Detroit’s New Center neighborhood.

Miriam Axel-Lute

Editor and Associate DirectorShelterforce, National Housing Institute

Miriam is editor of Shelterforce and associate director of the National Housing Institute. Based in Albany, N.Y., she is a board member of the Community Loan Fund of the Capital Region and the Community Development Alliance of the Capital District, of which Albany's land trust is a member. She writes Looking Up, an award-winning column for Albany's alt-weekly, Metroland.

CDC & CLT Collaborations

The history, mission, and goals of CDCs and CLTs are very similar. Each movement grew out of the civil rights struggle and each strives for empowered communities, working primarily with low-income populations. Even their tools—community organizing, housing development, economic development—are alike. Many CLTs identify as CDCs; many CDCs include CLT homes in their portfolios. In this session we’ll explore perceptions, similarities, and differences in the CLT and CDC movements and discuss opportunities for collaboration from a variety of perspectives. This session is ideal for CLTs and CDCs interested in learning more about working together to achieve common goals.

Event Speakers

LaShawn Hoffman

Mr. LaShawn M. Hoffman serves as the Chief Executive Officer for the Pittsburgh Community Improvement Association, Inc. (PCIA) PCIA is committed to rebuilding Atlanta’s historic Pittsburgh neighborhood as a safe, healthy economically viable community that provides housing and support services for families with limited incomes while welcoming people from all backgrounds. Through his leadership, this neighborhood-based community development corporation is preparing for thoughtful development, both human and physical, as the Pittsburgh community embraces a city that is constantly changing.
With more than 10 years of active service to Atlanta’s local and regional organizations, LaShawn has built an exceptional record of experience and leadership. Reflecting his strong commitment to economic development in Atlanta, Mr. Hoffman serves on many community boards and county panels. His service includes the Fulton County Community Development Block Grants Citizen Panel, board treasurer for the Atlanta Community Land Trust Collaborative and currently the President of the Atlanta Housing Association of Neighborhood-based Developers (AHAND) a trade association comprised of over 30 Atlanta based community development corporations.

Nate Coffman

Executive DirectorOhio CDC Association

Nate Coffman is executive director of the Ohio CDC Association (OCDCA), a non-profit trade association for community development corporations that work to revitalize rural and urban communities. Prior to joining OCDCA in December 2009, he directed the revitalization efforts of Cleveland's historic Ohio City neighborhood with the Ohio City Near West Development Corporation. For nine years he served as executive director of the Home Builders Association of Greater Cleveland (HBA). At the HBA, Nate helped bring the organization and the membership to invest and develop in many underserved urban neighborhoods working in partnership with local CDC's. He also worked several years in Columbus for U.S. Senator John Glenn and as an aide at the Ohio Senate. He is a native of southeastern Ohio and a graduate of The Ohio State University. Nate serves on the Board of Directors for the National Alliance of Community Economic Development Associations (NACEDA).

Emily Seibel

DirectorYellow Springs Home, Inc.

Emily Seibel serves as Executive Director of the Ohio-based nonprofit Yellow Springs Home, Inc. – a CLT which is also organized as a CDC and CHDO. She has a BA in Social and Global Studies with a Concentration in Economics from Antioch College and is a certified Housing Development Finance Professional through the National Development Council. Since joining the Community Land Trust field in 2009, she has developed a stewardship program, managed a homebuyer coaching program, and coordinated all phases of affordable housing development on several projects. She also serves on the board of the Ohio Community Development Corporation Association.

TA Speed Dating

The National Conference can be inspiring and overwhelming. This informal session will allow attendees to pitch a problem, brainstorm solutions and network with other permanently affordable housing practitioners. Strategically positioned at the end of the conference, this session is a great opportunity to ask follow-up questions, gain feedback on a new idea and start thinking about how you can implement some of your new skills back at home.

Event Speakers

Harry Smith

Harry Smith is Director of Sustainable Economic Development at the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative (DSNI) and Director of Dudley Neighbors Inc. Community Land Trust. He has more than twenty years of experience in organizing to promote affordable housing and community economic development in Boston’s neighborhoods. Before coming to DSNI, Harry served as Director of Organizing and Community Planning at the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Development Corporation and consulted with numerous community development and youth organizations on organizing, economic development, housing, and leadership initiatives. A graduate of Brown University, Harry has a Masters in Community Economic Development from Southern New Hampshire University.

Beth Sorce

Community & Capacity Building ManagerNational Community Land Trust Network

Beth Sorce currently serves as the Community and Capacity Building Manager for the National CLT Network and brings more than 10 years of affordable housing and shared experience to the organization. Based out of Boulder, CO, Beth earned her master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of New Orleans and has worked as an urban planner with GCR, Inc. and a Community Development Finance Fellow with Providence Community Housing in New Orleans and as the Director of Training at the Urban Homesteading Assistance Board (UHAB) in New York City. In addition to her work experience, Beth has conducted research on the role of CLTs in weak market cities, in the commercial realm and in the development and preservation of Low Income Housing Tax Credit Projects.

Both tours will focus on current and future neighborhood dynamics, Land Trust development and municipal and CDC partnerships.

Event Speaker

Marge Misak

Land Trust Program DirectorNeighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland

Marge Misak is the Land Trust Program Director at Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland in Ohio, which was established in Fall 2011 as a result of a merger with the Community Land Trust of Greater Cleveland. Marge was a member of the Advisory Board of the National CLT Network’s CLT Academy from 2009-2012 and was chair of the Research and Publications Committee. She has led classes and participated in forums at the CLT Academy, Ohio CDC Association, Cleveland State University Forum series and Cleveland City Club. Marge has a Bachelor of Science of Journalism degree from Northwestern University and lives in Cleveland.

HomeKeeper ADD-ON DAY: Thursday, May 1, 2014

HomeKeeper Training ($125)

Introduction to HomeKeeper
8:30am – 9:00am
HomeKeeper is a web-based management solution designed exclusively for community land trusts and affordable homeownership programs. HomeKeeper helps program staff track day-to-day program operations, store homebuyer and property information, and measure social impact. Learn more about this powerful tool and get the information you need to decided if you’re ready to implement this new data and program management system.

HomeKeeper Training and User Group Meeting
9:00am – 3:00pm
This hands-on training will help you to become a confident and competent HomeKeeper user. HomeKeeper users of all experience levels are encouraged to attend. Potential HomeKeeper users are also welcome to attend, and will be partnered with an existing user. Depending on the registration pool, we may split the class into two groups for beginners and advanced users.

Improve your understanding of the data being aggregated at the national level and the Social Impact Report for your program

This content of this workshop will be based on the needs and interests of the registered participants. Once you have registered, you will be sent a survey to better understand your skills and training interests.

Event Speakers

Liz Haney

HomeKeeper Member Support SpecialistCornerstone Partnership

Liz Haney has been the Member Support Specialist for HomeKeeper since May 2013. She is responsible for onboarding new user organizations, user trainings, creating documentation and responding to user requests. She is a former HomeKeeper user with extensive experience in a broad range of non-profits, working at UVMEND’s SHARE Community Land Trust in Leavenworth, WA for a year, as well as at TransCultural Exchange, a international art nonprofit and the Center of Concern, a progressive Catholic advocacy organization in Washington, DC. Liz received her Bachelors degree from Boston College.

Thane Maxwell

ConsultantCornerstone Partnership

Thane Maxwell is a consultant with Cornerstone Partnership and the data analyst for the HomeKeeper National Data HUB, which collects and analyzes performance data from shared-equity homeownership programs across the country.

Tiffany Eng

HomeKeeper Product ManagerCornerstone Partnership

Tiffany Eng has been leading the HomeKeeper program since August 2010 and currently oversees product development, marketing and member outreach. She brings over 15 years of experience providing organizations around the country with training and technical assistance in designing and implementing successful asset building programs. In addition, she has been a licensed California REALTORⓇ since 2007 and is a passionate advocate for first-time homebuyers. Tiffany has a masters in City and Regional Planning from UC Berkeley and an undergraduate degree from Carleton College.

Air: Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (CLE) is just 12 miles from downtown.

Ground: The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA) offers convenient service to and from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. RTA’s Red Line provides regular service between CLE and downtown Cleveland via the Tower City Station. The trip takes less than 30 minutes, and trains depart from CLE every 15 minutes for the majority of the day.